Mail carrier



F. E. POSTON AND J. s. HUMPH-R'IES.

MAIL QARRIER. APPucATldu FIILEID NOV. 8. 1920.

Patented Sept. 26, 1922.

3 SHEETSSHEET I.

I mphzk-s v F. E. POSTON AND '1. S. HUMPHRIES. MAIL CARRIER,

APPLICATION FILED N0 V= 8, 1920- 1,430,51 5, PatentedSept. 26, 1922.

I N N Patented Sept. 26, 19.22.

MUTE?) rates rm.

FURIVIAN E. POSTON AND JOHN S. HUMPHRIES, OF LAKE CITY, SOUTH CAROLINA.

MAIL CARRIER.

Application filed. November 8, 1920. Serial No. 422,648.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, FURMAN E. PosToN and JOHN S. Hniirrrmns, citizens of the United States of America residing at Lake City, in the county of Florence and State of South Carolina have invented new and useful Improvements in Mail Carriers,of which the following is a specification.

The object of the invention is to provide a simple and efiicient form of mail delivering and collecting apparatus adapted for use in connection with rural mail service and interurban service, under such conditions as to require attention only at designated star tions or points of collection and delivery and adapted to operate automatically in picking up and leaving receptacles such as sacks containing mail matter or packages, or recovering the empty receptacles or sacks which may be manually deposited at the stations for collection; and with this object in view the invention consists in the construction and combination of parts of which a preferred embodiment is shown in the drawings wherein Figure 1 is a perspective view of a carrier system embodying the invention.

Figure 2 is a detail elevation of a car or traveler located adjacent to one of the stations.

Figure 3 is an end view of the car or traveler showing the station uprightsor cranes in operative relation therewith.

Figure t is a detail sectional View of the car on the plane indicated by the line i -d of Figure 2.

The carrier system embodying the invention contemplates the use of a trolley track or'wire 10 from which is suspended a car or traveler 11 adapted to support a plurality of mail sacks or receptacles 12 for successive delivery at stations represented at. 13 or which obviously there may be any desired number to suit the route to be traversed or served by the system, any suitable means being employed for effecting the progress of the car, but not being. illustrated in this connection for the reason that it forms no part of the invention and may be modified to suit the conditions under which the ap paratus is employed; it being obvious that gravity may serve as the propelling medium when preferred and the conditions are favorable thereto. v

The car, in the illustrated embodiment of the invention, consists of a flat plate or mem-- be arranged at each side of the plane of the car as shown in the drawing), free at one end, and adapted to. have engaged therewith a series of sack supporting shackles 18 adapted to be stripped successively from the free end of the arm and capable of transverse swinging movement thereon. Each shackle is provided with a hook 19 for engaging the rod forming the delivery arm, and is extended below the hook to provide a stem 20 to which the sack may be attached in a pendent position, the upper end of'the shackle having a ring or eye 21 for engagement by a removing arm 22 located at a station and supported for example by a standard, post or crane 23, said removing arm being directed toward its free end in opposition to the path of progress of the car, and bein so disposed with relation to the path of tie car, that when one of the shackles'is me free pendent position the ring or eye at the upper end thereof is in a position to be engaged by the removing arm.

The car is provided with a progressively movable retaining pin'25 disposed in spanning relation with a plurality of recesses or slots 26 arranged in a longitudinal series with reference to the car and forming seats for the reception respectively of the rings or eyes of the shackles strung upon the de livery arm. The retaining pin by passing through said rings or, eyes located in said seats serves to hold the shackles with which the severalmail sacks are connected in an in clin'ed position as indicated in the drawing Figure 3 and in full lines in Figure 4; and the'rings or eyes thus engaged by the retaining pin are held out of the path or inwardly of the plane of the removing arm at the station to the end that those rings or eyes which are in engagement with the retaining pin are not engaged by the removing arm as the car passes the station.

The retaining pin is adapted to receive a step by step movement tosuccessively release the rings or eyes of the shackles engaged thereby, and upon the release or disengagement of a ring or eye the shackle carrying the same swings to a vertical position by reason of the pendant weight of the mail sack attached thereto so as to present the ring or eye at the upper end of said shackle in position to be engaged by the removing arm a station which may be passed by the car.

i he means for advancing or imparting the required step by step movement to the retaining pin to cause the successive release or disengagement oi": the rings or eyes of the shackles, and thus successively present said rings or eyes in position to be engaged by the removing arms oi? the successive sta tions along the route of the car, consists in the construction illustrated by a feed dog 27 operating in connection with a ratchet bar 28 attached to the retaining pin and yi'eldin gly held in a retracted position, for example by the spring 29, said dog being carried by the tree end oi a swinging arm 30 connected by a link 31 with treadle arm or lever 32in the path of which as the car progi asses, there is arranged, each station a tr!) 33, preferably consisting as illustrated or a roller to minimize friction and hence resistance to the progress of the car or carrier. An adjustable connection is provided between the pitman and the treadle lever to provide for the proper throw of the feed dog, as by employing a pivot bolt on the link engaginga slot 35 in the lever. The trip is carried by an upright, post, or crane 86 also located at or near the station and forming a part of the equipment thereof.

The car also carries a collecting arm 37 preferably arranged below or at least in a different horizontal plane from the delivery arm, and hence out of the range of movement of the removing'arm, to cooperate with a station delivery arm 38 carried by one of the posts or uprights 01" the station, so that mail to be collected may be engaged thereby and carried forward by the car,'or so that empty mail sacks may in this Way be returned to the mail distributing 'oflice or depot.

It will be understood that in the operation of the apparatus the sack supporting shackles mustbe arranged upon the delivery arm of the car in the order in which the s acks are to be distributed or deposited at the several stations along the route of the car, all of the rings or eyes of the shackles being engaged by the retaining pin, and as the car progresses the advancement of the pin serves to successively release the shackles to present them in proper position for engagement by the removing arms of the successive stations, so that without interruption of the movement of the car thes'acks are deposited at the stations for the proper distribution or" the mail matter or the reception thereof by the addresse'es. The collection of mail or of empty sacks may be conductedsimultaneously with the distribution of the mail for delivery, or may be conducted upon the re-, turn trip of the carrier as preferred.

Since the device must operate at a considerable level above the floor level in order that it may not take up too much room, it would not be serviceable from a practical standpoint were some means not provided for making the removing arm 22 and the delivery arm 38 accessible. Therefore means is provided for leveling and lowering these arms on the post or standard 23 on which they are carried. The two arms are united by a bracing member 50 and are attacl'ied to collars 51 and respectively, these collars being in surrounding relation to the post and slidable therealong. T he arms are held nearly in elevated position by means of a cable 57 carrying a weight 53 at one end and being attached to the arm 22 at the other end as indicated at 5%, suitable direction pulleys being provided and mounted on the post 23 tor movement of the cable 57 thereover. A cable 56 is provided and "serves means by which the arms may be lowered. Obviously the weight will serve to hold the arms in their raised position from which they may be lowered tor the attachment or removal of mailsa-cks. A stop 58 is provided in the post 23 against which the upper coll ar 51 may abut and this stop serves to limit the upward movement of the arms.

Having described the invention, We "claim:

1. A mail carrier having a car provided with a longitudinally disposed delivery arm, mail carrying shackles 'removably suspended from said arm and provided respectively with means for engagement by a stationary shackle removing arm, retaining means tor normally maintaining the shackles out of the path of said removing arm, and means for successively releasing the'shackles from said retaining means.

2. A mail carrier having a car provided with a longitudinally disposed delivery arm, pendent sack carrying shackles threaded upon said arm and provided with rings or eyes for engagement by a stationary removing arm, and retaining means, movable to successively release said shackles for non mallymaintaining the same with their rings or eyes out of engaging relation with "said removing arm. I

A mail carrier, having a car 'prcivided with a longitudinally extending delivery arm, sack carrying shackles suspended'f'rom and threaded upon said arm and provided with rings'or eyes for successive engagement by stationary removing arms, a retaining pin for normal engagement with said rings or eyes to hold the same in positions out'o'f engaging relation with said removing arms,

and feeding means for imparting a step by step movement to the retaining pin for successively releasing said rings or eyes.

4. A mail carrier having a car provided with a longitudinally disposed terminally free delivery arm, pendent sack carrying shackles threaded upon said arm and provided with rings or eyes for successive engagement by stationary removing arms,said car being provided with a series of seats for the reception respectively of said rings or eyes, a retaining pin disposed in spanning relation with said seats for normal engagement with the rings or eyes to maintain the latter out of engaging relation with said re-- moving arms, and feed mechanism for imparting a step by step ring releasing movement to said retaining pin, and consisting of a treadle carried by the car, and stationary trips arranged in the path of said treadle.

5. A mail carrier having a car provided with longitudinally extending terminally free delivery arms arranged at opposite sides or the plane thereof, and a collecting arm arranged beneath and substantially in the plane of the car, sack carrying shackles having hooks for pendant engagement with the delivery arms and provided at their upper ends with rings or eyes, a retaining pin arranged in the plane of and movable l0ngitudinally with relation to the car and engageable with said rings or eyes to maintain the shackles in inclined relations to the plane of the car, stationary removing arms disposed in the paths of the shackle rings or .eyes when the shackles are in a vertical pendant position, stationary delivery arms arranged in operative relation with the path of said collecting arm, and means for imparting a step by step movement to said retaining pin to successively release the rings or eyes engaged therewith.

6. A. mail carrier having a car provided with a longitudinally disposed delivery arm, mail carrying shackles removably suspended from said arm and provided each with rings for engagement by a stationary shackle removing arm, retaining means for normally retaining the shackles out 01 the path of said removing arm, and station operating means for releasing the shackles one by one, the shackles supporting the mail so that when they are released the weight of the mail disposes said rings in position for engagement by the said stationary shackle removing arm.

In testimony whereof they afiix their signatures.

FURMAN E. POSTON. JOHN S. I-IUMPHRIES. 

